In its most recent edition, Delta Sky Magazine highlights Seattle, featuring interviews with Gov. Christine Gregoire, Ben Gibbard, Howard Schultz, Melinda Gates, and more. Spotlighting various neighborhood districts within Seattle, the magazine offers a great inside look into the life of a Seattleite, popular tourist attractions, and our competitive industry sectors. Kiplinger has named Seattle one of the 10 best cities of the decade. With Seattle being home to some of the most influential companies—Microsoft, Costco, Amazon, Starbucks— and our regions knack for turning the impossible into possible, the city is at the cutting edge of innovation.

Jeff Marcell, president and CEO of enterpriseSeattle has commented “Seattle businesses aren’t simply leaders in their respective fields. They are game changers known for transforming their industries completely.” Starbucks is an example of this and is one of Seattle’s most iconic companies. Starting in 1971 as just a store in Pike Place Market selling coffee, tea, and spices, today it is internationally known with 17,000 retail stores in 55 countries.

With Seattle having an equal distance between Asia and Europe, Seattle businesses are at the epicenter of opportunity. Having nine-hour flight times to Tokyo and London and marine ports closer to Asia than any other major ports in the United States, Washington is the largest exporter per capita in the country. Not to mention one in every three jobs in Seattle is tied to international trade.

Seattle has a highly educated work force that is a large draw for business. More than half of all adults in Seattle have at least a bachelor’s degree (nearly twice the national average). The University of Washington is a magnet for higher learning, with campuses in Seattle, Tacoma, and Bothell. The University receives more federal funding than any other public university in the country. Nearly 75 percent of its graduates remain in state after graduation and the school is Washington’s third-largest employer in the state with an economic impact of $9.1 billion. More than 260 companies have come to life through its students and faculty or from UW research.

The Seattle area has been called the continent’s most influential high-tech sector after Silicon Valley, with the second highest concentration of computer programmers and engineers, and information technology that supports more than 100,000 jobs. Facebook, Intel, Oracle and Google all have offices here along with more than 150 interactive and gaming technology companies that are within a 30 mile radius. Both Rhapsody and Concur are Seattle region natives. However, Microsoft is the biggest contributor to the state’s economic growth, accounting for more than 32 percent of total employment gain. “Consumers are demanding that new technologies, whether devices are services, work together in a seamless way,” says Microsoft spokesperson Mark Murray. More than 650,000 companies partner with Microsoft to build applications on Microsoft platforms and to create solutions for business customers using Microsoft software.

With three of the eight scientists to crack the human genome code living in Seattle, the city has become one of the best places in the world to receive healthcare. Much of this would not have been possible without the founding of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and its contribution of over $26 billion in grant commitments since 1994.

Today, the mayor joined neighborhood business district leaders and local business owners at Big Time Brewery & Alehouse in Seattle’s University District to announce a $1.1 million investment in 19 neighborhood business districts as part of the Seattle Jobs Plan.

“Our neighborhood business districts are a critical economic asset. Their diversity and strength is a part of what makes our city special,” said Mayor McGinn. “The dollars that the city invests support projects that make an immediate impact in our neighborhoods, and they also serve as catalysts that bring neighborhood business district leaders together to organize and create a shared vision for long-term revitalization strategies, which will help our city’s overall economic recovery.”

Small businesses employ 72 percent of Seattle’s workforce and contribute 35 percent of the city’s business tax revenues, totaling $55.4 million. Our local neighborhood business districts serve as the location and incubators for many of the city’s small businesses. The Seattle Jobs Plan specifically targets investment in Seattle’s neighborhood business districts.

“As a business owner, I know that investments in our business district help us do more to improve our business environment and support our local businesses,” said Don Schulze, board chair of the University District Chamber of Commerce and owner of Shultzy’s. “I’m excited about this investment in our University District business to help us, the business and property owners, get organized around a shared vision for the future of our neighborhood.”

The Office of Economic Development (OED)’s Only in Seattle Initiative supports investments in neighborhood business districts, and focuses on the following strategies to create healthy business districts:

Business and retail development (supporting businesses, enhancing business mix);

Marketing and promotion (events, social media, district advertising);

Clean and safe (graffiti removal, dumpster free alleys, lighting);

Streetscape and appearance (catalytic development projects, façade, public art); and

Business organization development to sustain the effort, including participation of an existing Business Improvement Area (BIA) or commitment to form one.

The local business communities in these nine neighborhoods have developed comprehensive, multi-year strategies, in which the city is investing a total of $844,000 in 2012.

Capitol Hill / 12th Avenue $128,000

Central Area Main Streets $ 72,000

Chinatown / International District $185,000

Columbia City $ 66,500

MLK (Rainier Valley) $ 83,000

Pioneer Square $120,000

Rainier Beach $ 55,000

University District $ 70,000

White Center $ 64,500

In addition, the city is investing $142,500 to support focused investments in additional neighborhoods, as well as the Only in Seattle marketing campaign and business organization development.

The city will expand the Only in Seattle marketing campaign, which highlights the hidden gems of shopping and dining in Seattle’s neighborhoods (www.onlyinseattle.org). The following neighborhoods will join the Only in Seattle marketing effort: Fremont, Pioneer Square and Wallingford.

The city also will invest to build strong business-focused organizational capacity to sustain the efforts of neighborhood business districts. Support for Business Improvement Area (BIA) formation will occur in the following neighborhoods: Ballard, Belltown, Capitol Hill / 12th Avenue, Madison Valley, Pioneer Square, SODO, and West Seattle.

“The city is focused on helping business and property owners to strengthen local business climate and grow jobs,” said Steve Johnson, director of the Office of Economic Development. “Through the Only in Seattle Initiative we have created an investment framework and partnerships to execute strategies to support healthy business districts.”

In addition this year, the city is investing $100,000 in three neighborhoods for façade improvements: Columbia City, Central Area Main Streets, and Chinatown/International District. This investment was matched with $142,764 in private dollars. These improvements directly impact the continued revitalization of the neighborhood business districts and support ongoing business attraction and clean and safe strategies.

“The City’s investment in the Viet-Wah façade with a new awning and improved lighting will help our customers feel welcome and safe while they are shopping,” said Duc Tran, Chairman, Viet-Wah Group in Little Saigon. “Helping our business districts look and feel clean and professional help attract a mix of businesses and companies, increase our customer base and in turn, expand our bottom line.”

OED will fund and manage this program in partnership with Impact Capital, a Seattle-based community development financial institution serving underserved communities throughout Washington.

OED also partnered with the Seattle Department of Transportation this year to better understand the purpose and patterns of travel by visitors in various neighborhood business districts by conducting an intercept survey of visitors in six neighborhood business districts.

“From this survey we were able to gauge important patterns of customers in the district, including how long they were staying, and what other services they were looking for,” said Shelley Morrison, chairman of the marketing committee of the Columbia City Business Association. “We will use this data to improve our marketing and business attraction efforts. It’s the kind of research we couldn’t afford to do on our own, but is greatly beneficial, especially when we can compare ourselves to other neighborhoods.”